The Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974 has far reaching implications for your business and it is essential you understand and comply with its regulations. It is legally YOUR responsibility to provide a safe environment for your customers and agents and to show a duty of care towards them. Ignorance of this law is NOT considered a defence in the eyes of the law should anyone be injured whilst attending one of your classes.

It is vital that you implement rigorous health and safety procedures every time you hold a class because:

Accidents WILL happen and for your own peace of mind and legal protection, you need to know that you did everything you could to prevent it from happening.

We live in an increasingly litigious society. Your customers know their rights and your responsibilities. For the sake of your business you have to assume that any accident can result in legal action against you and that you will be held to account.

The more accidents that happen and the more claims made against franchisees, the higher your insurance premiums will become. Keeping accidents and claims down is an industry-wide issue!

To build a strong successful business, customers need to have confidence in your ability to provide a safe environment for them and more importantly for their children.

We have a moral responsibility, as well as a legal one, to keep parents and children safe and free from harm and injury, whilst enjoying one of our classes.

It is the LAW!

Assessing potential risks is not a precise science. If we were to avoid every risk we could possibly encounter, we would stop doing everything! When considering Health and Safety, you need to ask yourself:

what could possibly happen?

how likely is it that it will happen?

what can I do to reduce the risk of it happening?

is it reasonable to ask people to take that risk?

You will probably find as you do this, that the hazards you identify and the actions that you take are really just common sense. However, if an accident did occur and you found yourself in court, the fact that you have lots of common sense would not be adequate proof that you had exercised your duty of care. The law requires tangible evidence and in this case written proof.

You will find all documentation to help you implement this Health and Safety policy in the resources section.

Statement of Policy

MAD Academy aims to:

Ensure franchisees provide adequate control of the health and safety risks arising from our classes and parties

Ensure franchisees provide and maintain their equipment safely

Ensure franchisees are competent to run classes safely, and to give them adequate training

Minimise the risks of accidents to franchisees, their agents, and their customers

Review and revise this policy as necessary at regular intervals

Roles and Responsibilities

Franchisees are responsible for managing health and safety in their classes and at their venues. They are responsible for completing risk assessments of their venues, equipment and parties, for managing the risks identified by taking appropriate action where necessary, and for completing daily health and safety checklists.

Franchisees are responsible for ensuring all agents understand the health and safety requirements of their classes and complete their daily checklists. It is the responsibility of the agent to carry out equipment and risk assessments, but the responsibility of the franchisee to ensure it has been done.

Head Office is responsible for providing health and safety advice and support to franchises, for maintaining the Health and Safety Policy and for providing adequate training.

Procedure

Franchisees are required to provide a safe environment for themselves and their customers when running classes or parties. They must: